I. Field
The following description relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly to open loop power control in a wireless communication environment.
II. Background
Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication and have become a prevalent means by which a large number of people worldwide communicate. A typical wireless communication system or network can provide multiple users access to one or more shared resources. For instance, a system may use a variety of multiple access techniques such as Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM), Time Division Multiplexing (TDM), Code Division Multiplexing (CDM), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM), and others. Wireless communication devices have become smaller and more powerful to meet consumer needs, which include improved portability and convenience. Users have found many uses for wireless communication devices, such as cellular telephones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and the like, and such users demand reliable service and expanded coverage areas.
Wireless communications networks are commonly utilized to communicate information regardless of where a user is located (inside or outside a structure) and whether a user is stationary or moving (e.g. in a vehicle, walking). Generally, wireless communications networks are established through a mobile device communicating with a base station or access point. The access point covers a geographic region or cell and, as the mobile device is operated, the mobile device may move in and out of these geographic cells. To achieve uninterrupted communication, the mobile device is assigned resources of a cell it has entered and de-assigned resources of a cell it has exited.
To effectuate continued coverage, access points associated with networks are geographically positioned so as users change location they do not lose services. Thus, mobile devices can be “handed off” from a first base station to a second base station. In other words, a mobile station will be serviced by a first base station while in a geographic region associated with such base station. When the mobile device is transported to a region associated with a second base station, the mobile device will be handed off from the first base station to the second base station. Ideally, the handoff occurs without data loss, loss of service, and the like. However, if it takes a mobile device an excessive amount of time to establish communication with a base station, the call might be lost or communications interrupted. In addition, inadequate communication with a base station might cause interference to neighboring devices.